Railcars, in particular freight railcars, are widely used to transport a wide variety of goods across a transportation network extending across most continents. A vast variety of goods are transported by rail, ranging from automobiles to produce. In many cases, materials transported by rail are typically packaged as bales, bundles or boxes.
The transportation of baled materials, such as wood pulp, in freight containers, such as a railcars, presents a number of potential problems. The interior of the container must be adequately ventilated to allow for the escape of water vapor released by the baled product. The interior of the container should include means for venting the interior of the car around the bales or bundles of product while simultaneously preventing moisture, in the form of rain, sleet or snow, from entering the container. The bales or bundles of product should be positioned and restrained within the container in a manner such that the cargo is not in direct contact with the interior of the container to facilitate ventilation of the container and to prevent the product from bleeding moisture onto the walls of the container. The container should also be provided with means to expedite the drainage of condensation from the car.
Thus, there exists a need for an improved freight container, adapted to overcome the foregoing drawbacks and problems.